take a journey with me over the next 1001 days as I work towards scratching 101 things off my list

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

CHECK times 6 and a 1/2

Now that midterms are over and this semester’s projects are coming to an end I finally get to tell you all about the items I have been able to scratch off in a little less than 2 months!!! YAY!
5. Start an agenda like Granny Leach’s
This CHECK is all thanks to my buddy Kegan.  Shortly after I made my 101 list, Kegan came home from Walmart with an agenda just for me – with no year! Apparently these agendas are called “undated”.  I’m not exactly sure how I have never been able to find one before.
My mom was a little disappointed when she saw this on my list.  She knew that I had wanted an agenda like this for a while and had actually bought me one, planning to give it to me at Christmas.  She also had trouble finding an agenda like this and ended up getting me the only one she could find.  It cost her $20, had a drawing of a cat on the front cover, and said “100% Quebecois” on the back cover (she didn’t notice the quebecois part until she got it home).  I loved that she went out of her way to look for the agenda and get me a thoughtful Christmas gift… but we both agreed that I should use the one from Kegan :)

6. ROADIE to Bishop’s with my besties – to visit Court
On Saturday November 6th, some of my best buddies (Kendra, Dannah and Britt) and I hit the road to Lennoxville to visit Courtney at Bishop’s.  We had a fantastic time – with tons of dancing, laughing and shots!  We meet a bunch of awesome people and made lots of memories.  We actually had so much fun that we have already started planning the next trip for Court’s birthday in January.
P.S. Mollie you are da best!! Glad you got a chance to experience the Q! Ben said that it was quite the sight in Megs bed on Sunday – haha too funny! Love it :) :)
Here are some pics from our night (Brud don't know where you were when I was taking pictures lol):





49. Visit Troy's grave with my Christmas Eve cousins
On November 7th, the girls and I left Lennoxville very early so that I could get back to Quyon in time to join my Xmas Eve cousins at Troy’s grave to celebrate what would have been his 37th birthday.  We all gathered after church to send birthday balloons up to Troy in heaven.  We stayed there and watched the balloons float in the sky until we couldn’t see them any longer.  As we all piled into our vehicles to leave the cemetery “Free Fallin’” was playing on the radio.  There could not have been a bigger sign that Troy was with us.
There is no doubt in my mind that the birthday wishes made it to him by his birthday the next day.
As of now, #49 is only half checked.. Jill (a.k.a the 101 cop) said it didn’t count because not ALL the cousins were there.  5 people were missing but I am going to count this one as complete as long as I visit the grave with these people at some point before my finish date.
40. See a movie in IMAX
On Friday, Kegan and I went to see Harry Potter in IMAX.  The first showing was sold out so we went to Moxie’s to eat and have a few drinks beforehand.  We only ended up getting out of the theatre at 1:30 a.m. but it was totally worth it.  We LOVE Harry <3
90. Have a girls’ night in at my place
On the Friday of my reading week I had my favourite girls over for a night in.  This was the first girls’ night at the new house and it was great.  We had an awesome time – lotsa laughs and catching up :)  It ended a little early because the host (ya, that’s me :S) didn’t pace herself and ended up passing out around midnight!! Haha, goodtime none-the-less!
75. Have another sleep over with Kaitlin Hobbs when I don't have a midterm the next day
After my girls night Kaitlin slept over – YAY!  I love this girl!  We have been buddies since Grade 7 – and even though high school is over and we don’t see each other every day, things never change – we hug every time we see each other and it feels like no time has passed..  Kaitlin is the most positive, and refreshing person I have ever met.  Nobody can be upset when they are with Kaitlin – she definitely knows how to put a smile on someone’s face :) :) LOVE YOU!
Here is a few pics of Kait and I over the years (really wish I was in Quyon because I have some really sexy pics of us from Gr. 7&8, haha):
 Youngins

 Aftergrad

High school 

 Kingston Roadie - Kisses <3

Love you!

100. Get an edgy hair cut /or dye job
I was hoping to get a picture over the weekend to post so you could see my hair, unfortunately I didn’t and I really don’t think the bed head I have right now would give it justice.
I don’t exactly know if my hair style should be considered edgy (Luke thinks so.. I think, haha, I couldn’t tell if he was being serious or sarcastic).  I have got many comments from “hot” and “makes you look older” to “cute” and “makes you look younger”… I am going to consider it ‘edgy’ because it was a big cut for me.. I haven’t had my hair this short since Grade 2!


Monday, November 1, 2010

Attempt #1 FAILED

I was told this weekend, by one of my fav cousins, that I was a horrible blogger.  And I guess I can’t disagree with that, considering that I have only written two posts since I started my blog on October 4th. When I created my 101 list blog, I planned on writing often but I have been so busy that it has been near impossible.  I am taking extra courses this semester so that I can graduate from my undergrad in the spring.  And I must admit, when I do get some time away from the studying and paper writing I would much rather have a pint with my girls than take time to do MORE writing.  Although, I haven’t been posting, I have been checking things off my 101 list… I will be writing another post soon with the success I have had in my first month.  Along with the success, I have also had failure…
Attempt #1 at the Belly Fat Cure = FAILED.  I was doing so well at the beginning and managed to lose 5lbs… but unfortunately Halloween got the best of me!! I had absolutely no will power and ate way too many chocolate bars – gaining back 4 of the 5 pounds lost :(  Attempt #2 begins tomorrow!! Although Halloween is over, it will still be a difficult task because the house is full of left over candy.  Wish me luck everybody!!
I must keep this blog short and get going… I am in a lecture right now and should probably start paying attention and try to absorb some of the knowledge that is costing me so much!
Have a great week and hopefully you will hear from me again, sooner than later!!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Attempt #1: The Belly Fat Cure (list #84)

On Monday,  I will begin my first attempt at following the Belly Fat Cure diet for one month.  I say ATTEMPT because I have tried over the past couple months to do this and have failed.  Although I haven't been able to stick to it for more than a couple days, it has allowed me to become conscious of the amount of sugar I consume. 
The reason I put this on my 101 list is because I want to prove to myself that I have the self control to complete the task.  Also, it will most likely help with #21, to lose 15lbs.

For those of you that have yet to hear about the Belly Fat Cure, it is a diet created by Jorge Cruise that focuses on sugar and carb intake.
The diet allows you to have daily:
 - 15 grams of sugar, and
 - 6 carb points (0pts = under 5g, 1pt = 6-20g, 2pt = 21-40g, 3pt = 41-60g)
 - It also asks you to avoid artificial sweeteners (such as Splenda, aspartame and sucralose) because they are unnatural and are not processed by your body properly.  Jorge suggests you sweeten your food with natural sweeteners such as Stevia and sugar alcohols.

Reading about this diet has made me very aware of what Jorge calls "hidden sugar" and how diet foods can be misleading.  Many of these foods, although low in calories and fat have been packed with sugars and carbs.  For example:  Regular Tostitos have no sugar but the multigrain ones do.
To give you an idea of the amount of sugar in the foods you are eating, one teaspoon of sugar = 4g sugar.
 - A chocolate chip muffin from Tim Horton's (which I ate while writing this) has 40g of sugar and 69g of Carbs (40 sugar/4 carb points) - over twice as much sugar than you should have in a day and 2/3 of your carbs. Gross right?
 - A granny smith apple contains 19g of sugar and a glass of milk 12g.  I will not be counting the sugar and milk in my diet because they are essential to your health and should only be cut out if you want immediate weight loss.  I will however cut back tremendously - I will only have milk every other day and will eat only fruits will lower amount of sugar, such as blackberries (7g per cup).

Another big thing to watch on this diet is what you drink.  Especially alcoholic drinks - every oz of wine vines has 2.5g of sugar - and lets face it, our glasses are bigger than an oz and we drink more than one glass.  On this diet, beer is definitely the way to go!  Budlight with a 0sugar/1carb point count allows you to have 6 pints if you eat nothing else all day :) or the amazing Miller Chill and Miller Lite has a 0/0 count so you can drink an endless amount!! You know what Ill be drinking over the next month ;)

I have chosen Monday as my start day because I know it would not be possible for me to get through Thanksgiving or Christmas without my fair share of sweets :) I will be missing out on the Halloween candy but I'll survive

Wish me luck everyone! I will keep you posted!

Monday, October 4, 2010

My 101 List: Starting October 4, 2010

1. Get a tattoo 2. Go somewhere that requires flying over the Atlantic Ocean
3. Have a Harry Potter Marathon – watching all the movies over a weekend, preferably with my bff KKeon (0/8)
4. Get a piercing
5. Start an agenda like Granny Leach’s – it was not specific to one year, it only had the day (January 1 rather than January 1, 2010) and she would write when something special happened on that day every year: births, deaths and other events. I have looked for a book like this for a while and can’t find one like it so I will most likely have to scrapbook a blank book.
6. ROADIE to Bishop’s with my besties – to visit Court
7. Finish my undergrad at uOttawa and get one more type of diploma or certification (0/2)
8. Go on a trip with my mom – Shopping in Syracuse doesn’t count.
9. Go down south.
10. Toilet train my cat
11. Get my first full time, grown up job
12. Buy patio furniture (after I get Ben to build me a deck) (0/2)
13. Buy myself a charm for my Pandora bracelet when I feel proud of myself
14. Learn how to play the guitar (at least one song)
15. Donate blood
16. Spend a day with Granny Mo – and maybe play “I Spy” for old times’ sake
17. Go a week without TV (0/7 days)
18. Go Zip-lining
19. Go snowshoeing at least once a week for an entire winter (snow permitting)
20. Start scrapbooking again – do at least 10 pages (0/10)
21. Lose 15 lbs or as much as it takes to feel confident enough to wear a bikini (0/15)
22. Get my own snowmobile or four-wheeler
23. Go to Toronto for a concert
24. Participate in a run where the money goes to a good cause
25. Take a French course
26. Go see the house for CHEO’s “Dream of a Lifetime” and buy a ticket
27. Get a puppy/dog
28. Go one week on a gluten-free diet – this includes drinks (guess I’ll be on Vodka this week)
29. Stay in bed until 1:00PM for no reason – cannot be sick or hung over
30. 5 random acts of kindness (0/5)
31. Finally have the people over for supper that we have had supper with so many times (J&K, K&T, J&L&F)
32. Go on a snowmobile trip that includes an overnight stay (to a camp or resort)
33. Go up to the hippie camp/lookout during the fall
34. Get an A+ overall in one of my courses
35. Go one month without drinking any alcoholic beverages
36. Develop all my good pictures - I have got in the habit of not printing any of them
37. Roll and cash in all my change
38. Throw a Christmas party with our close friends
39. Refinish our kitchen table
40. See a movie in IMAX
41. Give away the clothes I haven't worn in the past 6 months
42. Go to the gym at least 3 times a week or one month
43. Spend a day with Hollie and her babes
44. Buy someone a gift for no special reason other than that they mean a lot to me
45. Win a ring toss tournament at Aud and Joey's
46. Buy a complete workout outfit from lululemon
47. Have a repeat of supper at the Casa Greque with Ken and Dan.. With a taxi ride home :)
48. Go to church every weekend for a month and light a candle for someone each time
49. Visit Troy's grave with my Christmas Eve cousins
50. Organize the basement and get rid of the stuff we are never going to use
51. Play in a 3 pitch tournament - even though I suck at baseball
52. Go to a driving range
53. Donate money to cystic fibrosis –  and help share Eva’s legacy.  Please watch  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xw7OP5bQ5A and visit Eva's blog at www.65redroses.livejournal.com 
54. Shadow a nurse for a day
55. Shadow an ultrasound technologist for a day
56. Go partridge hunting with Ben, Kendra and Travis
57. Spend a long weekend at the cottage
58. Finish a paper before the night before it is due
59. Get a cricket machine for my scrapbooking
60. Go camping for a weekend
61. Get a TV for our bedroom
62. Spend a day with Brandon without any fights or sarcastic comments being made
63. Have another party on mom's deck without it falling down!
64. Paint my bedroom
65. Be Bucky's date at another wedding but control my alcohol consumption
66. Volunteer to sell beer tickets for at least 5 Quyon community events (0/5)
67. Help decorate for 5 Quyon community events (0/5)
68. Go to a gala or formal event with my girls
69. Witness Bria Hearty sing her heart out at an event outside of the Pontiac
70. Have supper or drinks with Tiff at least once every 6 months (0/6)
71. Try to get Dad to quit smoking
72. Spend a winter evening in Dad's hot tub
73. Make personal cards for people rather than buying - make at least 10 (0/10)
74. Have a mother-daughter day with, Mom, Tootie & Dannah, Kellie & Keg, JL & Ash, and Dar & Ken and whoever else would like to join
75. Have another sleep over with Kaitlin Hobbs when I don't have a midterm the next day
76. Go back to Halifax
77. Open another bank account to put savings in off of each pay
78. Have a combined party with Ash, Ian and Kyle to break in our homes
79. Paint one room/wall in the house a bright colour
80. During the summer months put half of my pay check on my student loan
81. Spend a day on Audrey's boat
82. Drink only water for one week
83. Bake with Granny for a day - and hopefully learn how to bake something that tastes good
84. Go one month following the belly fat cure diet (under 15g of sugar a day)
85. Go Xmas shopping in the States
86. Start a scrapbook just for travel - already have the scrapbook thanks to Keg
87. Receive a postcard
88. Be truly surprised by a gift (in a good way)
89. Send Uncle Reid a letter for no reason at all just because I know he would enjoy it
90. Have a girls night in at my place
91. Sleep at Kegan's without waking up Kellie and Davey - three consecutive times (0/3)
92. Have an Aunt-Niece night with Donna K when Ellard is away for a weekend
93. Go on a trip with just Ben
94. Train Ben to make the bed in the morning
95. Go white water rafting
96. Talk to /catch up with Cass
97. Ask Grandpa about how he used to stop Hollie's nose bleeds
98. Go fishing
99. Make a snow angel without a handprint
100. Get an edgy hair cut /or dye job
101. Try my best to complete this list in 1001 days - if I don't I will give $5 towards a charity for every unfinished item.